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Kenya: Government wants to impose GMOS 'by force'
The grand scheme to introduce genetically modified foods into Kenya seemed to shift into top gear after the Ministry of Agriculture launched a campaign last month to make the country appreciate them.
First, Minister for Agriculture, William Ruto, who has on several occasions publicly expressed his support for the introduction of GM foods into the country, launched the National Biotechnology Awareness Strategy last month.
According to a statement Ruto sent to the press, the strategy was aimed at offering Kenyans "accurate and reliable information and knowledge" about such branches of biotechnology as tissue culture, molecular breeding and genetic modification.
"This will enable Kenyans to make informed decisions and be involved in determining the pace of adoption of biotechnology in the country," he said.
However, Ruto went ahead to state that Kenya will embrace GMOs, making it appear the government had launched the awareness campaign merely to state its pro-GMO stance.
This has led to fresh fears that the government has irrevocably decided on introduction, cultivation and commercialisation of GMOs in the country.
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The Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology has also been preparing to take back to parliament a Bill that was heavily criticised last year for failing to address the concerns of farmers and consumers and for merely seeking to create the necessary legal framework for the introduction of GMOs in Kenya.
snip
"They want to do it by force, the so-called national awareness strategy is a mere gimmick," said Josphat Ngonyo of the Africa Network for Animal Welfare. Mr Ngonyo said KBioC, of which he is a member, has attempted to get the agriculture minister to listen to its side of the GMO story to no avail. KBioC is anumbrella body representing over 50 farmers' groups, religious organisations, consumer organisations and NGOs.
snip
But one of the leading proponents of genetic engineering in Kenya, Dr Florence Wambugu, told The EastAfrican that those opposed to the introduction and proliferation of GMOs in Africa are profiteers and fearmongers.
"There are those who get business from fearmongering," she said. She also accused Greenpeace International of offering false information by claiming that some of the maize seeds grown in Kenya are contaminated by GM-materials.
This drew the ire of a Greenpeace official who accused Dr Wambugu of employing "scare tactics" in campaigning for GMOs in Africa.
"The genetic engineering industry, and their spokesperson for Africa, Florence Wambugu, must be really desperate if they are now resorting to lies, and ridiculous ones... Greenpeace never ever endangered the environment, the life of farmers and the health of consumers by putting a single genetically engineered seed into any soil anywhere in the world, and whoever suggests the opposite is completely out of touch with reality," said Jan Van Aken of Greenpeace's Sustainable Agriculture.
What is interesting is that even though she denied that Monsanto ever funded her in her pro-GMO campaign, Dr Wambugu nevertheless admitted that she gets money from such bodies as the United States Development Agency (USAid), Rockefeller Foundation, Dupont and CropLife International.
The latter is an organisation represented in 91 countries whose members include the global who's-who of the genetic engineering industry -- BASF, Bayer CropScience, Dow Agrosciences, Dupont, FMC, Monsanto, Sumitomo and Syngenta. Dr Wambugu is the founder of Africa Harvest, which campaigns for GMOs in Africa.
_________________ The grand scheme to introduce genetically modified foods into Kenya seemed to shift into top gear after the Ministry of Agriculture la... more -
Brussels slaps massive fines on 'mafia' of energy majors
Sasol, Total, ExxonMobil and six others have been fined €676 million for participating in a cartel that for 13 years fixed prices of paraffin wax, a petrochemical product widely used for consumer goods like paper cups, candles and tyres. Sasol, Total, ExxonMobil and six others have been fined €676 million for participating in a cartel that for 13 years fixed prices of p... more
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Following other states, New York may lease assets
Gov. David Paterson is proposing that New York join a growing number of states in leasing assets to private contractors to trim costs and provide long-term, steady revenue.
Under consideration for leasing could be everything from state highways and bridges to the lottery, golf courses, parks and beaches.
Paterson said this week he is creating a commission to study public-private partnerships and come up with specific recommendations by January, in time for his first State of the State address and state budget proposal.
Investment bankers have already shown interest in leasing some assets, part of a nationwide trend. Among them is the lottery, which state officials have said could bring in $4 billion up front to the state and $200 million a year after that for higher education.
Nationally, Wall Street investment houses have courted more than a dozen states to lease state lotteries to private investors. The Illinois House last month approved a plan to raise $10 billion for building roads and schools by privatizing its state-run lottery for half a century, with the Senate scheduled to vote on the measure this fall.
While leasing toll roads is more common in Europe and Asia, a handful of states have experimented with the notion.
In June 2006, an Australian-Spanish partnership paid $3.8 billion to lease the Indiana Toll Road and $1.83 billion to lease the eight-mile Chicago Skyway.
That same month, an Australian company bought a 99-year lease on Virginia's Pocahontas Parkway, and Texas officials decided to let a Spanish-American partnership build and run a toll road from Austin to Seguin for 50 years.
More recently, New Jersey legislators have debated letting private firms operate toll lanes on the New Jersey Turnpike, while last month a private partnership withdrew their $12.8 billion bid to lease the Pennsylvania Turnpike for 75 years after the Legislature there was slow to take them up on the offer.
Several other states have leased the operation of sea ports and airports. The private firms hope to improve management and marketing to increase profits. In exchange, the states want to guarantee a reliable return and avoid rising costs for maintenance and potentially for payroll.
One possible target for leasing is the 53-year-old Tappan Zee Bridge, which spans the Hudson River north of Manhattan and will soon have to be replaced at a cost estimated around $9.3 billion. The bridge's toll is scheduled to rise to $5 from $4 next year.
Sean Patrick Maloney, a top aide to Paterson, emphasized that the Democrat isn't seeking to sell any state assets.
"I believe the private sector can be a source of innovation, allowing us to increase the value, efficiency and safety of assets like our aging infrastructure system," Patterson said.
Public employee unions will get a say in the process. ------------more at link--------------
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hmmm, I wonder if NY is going to ask for a few billion from Uncle Sam......there's more coming, so stay tuned! Gov. David Paterson is proposing that New York join a growing number of states in leasing assets to private contractors to trim costs ... more -
NRDC sues EPA for honey bee pesticide data: their answer: approve bee killing Move...
This interview is alarming. I really think it is time to shut down some of these agencies and start over. This is criminal.
To save space I jumped around. The entire article and interview is at the link in its entirety.
Aaron Colangelo, Senior Attorney, Natural Resources Defense Council, Washington, D. C.:
And the reason that NRDC sued is that five years later, there was no public information. We couldn't find out from the EPA website or anywhere else whether those (Bayer) studies had been conducted and submitted to EPA? And if so, what did they show? Did they actually show safety? Or did they raise more concerns?
And we still don't have a clear answer to that. EPA and Bayer have both said since we sued that the studies have been submitted and they show safety. But we haven't seen the actual studies themselves. So we still think there is no way for the public to evaluate the information about harm that this (clothianidin) pesticide causes to bees.
But there does seem to be a growing scientific consensus that pesticides are implicated ; that they might be contributing in some way and that's what we are trying to find out.
YES, AND IT IS THE SYNERGY OF SO MANY CHEMICALS OUT THERE NOW IN THE LANDSCAPE, OVERLAYING WITH EACH OTHER. AND ON THAT VERY POINT, JERRY HAYES IN THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONTACTED ME THIS WEEK TO SEND ME A COPY OF THE NEW WARNING LABEL FROM BAYER CROP SCIENCE ON A BRAND NEW PESTICIDE CALLED MOVENTO. IT SAYS QUOTE: THIS PRODUCT IS POTENTIALLY TOXIC TO HONEY BEE LARVAE THROUGH RESIDUES IN POLLEN AND NECTAR, BUT NOT TO ADULT HONEY BEES. EXPOSURE OF ADULT BEES TO DIRECT TREATMENT OR RESIDUES ON BLOOMING CROPS, CAN LEAD TO EFFECTS ON HONEY BEE LARVAE.
And one problem with that kind of label and the label language you just read is that the (chemical) industry almost uses it as a kind of Get Out of Jail Free card that if enough warnings are on the label, then we (Bayer) can be exonerated from any harm that's caused. And another problem with that is that these labels are pages and pages long. They might have detailed instructions about what time of year and what wind speed and what nozzle size on your sprayer is or is not appropriate, depending on which crop and when they are blooming. And to expect every applicator, every farmer who is using that pesticide to read the fine print for pages and pages and comply with it in every case is just asking too much.
EPA really needs to develop a comprehensive strategy for protecting honey bees and look at all the different pesticides that are already on the market that are known to be highly toxic to bees. Sometimes in combination, multiple pesticides are many times more toxic than either one would be individually.
MOVENTO SCARES YOU, RIGHT?
Oh, absolutely!
HOW COULD THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY APPROVE REGISTRATION OF MOVENTO?
It's an excellent question and we in the industry and some industry groups are trying to propose a meeting with the EPA so that they can get some more facts about why this product was approved without perhaps some more research data behind it.
SO, WHAT YOU MEAN IS THAT BAYER DID ITS OWN FIELD TESTS AND THEN SUBMITTED THAT WORK TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, WHICH BASICALLY RUBBER STAMPED THE BAYER SELF-SERVING FIELD TESTS?
Yes, EPA accepts all data whether it's from Bayer or other companies on products, assuming that their (companies) science is good. And it's kind of like putting the fox in the hen house, isn't it? This interview is alarming. I really think it is time to shut down some of these agencies and start over. This is criminal. ... more -
Monsanto and Michael Pollan talk about creating a world that can feed itself
This is like 36 minutes long, but it's definitely worth watching...
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McCain's real plan: to privatize social security
GREEN BAY, Wisc. - Wall Street turmoil left John McCain scrambling to explain why the fundamentals of the U.S. economy remained strong. It also left him defending his support for privately investing Social Security money in the same markets that had tanked earlier in the week.
The Republican presidential nominee says all options must be considered to stave off insolvency for the government insurance and retirement program, and top McCain advisers say that includes so-called personal retirement accounts like those President Bush pushed in 2005 but abandoned in the face of congressional opposition.
The aides tried to soothe voters concerned about the bankruptcies, takeovers and bailouts on Wall Street by declaring McCain favored only the option of such accounts, just for younger workers, and most likely in a conservative investment vehicle such as bonds.
Private accounts for Social Security are "always an easier sell when the markets are going up instead of going down," said David Wyss, chief economist at Standard & Poor's. "I don't think this is a good week to sell that one politically, but you're looking at the long term here. You're investing your retirement funds for 20 or 30 years down the road."
A headline Friday in the Manchester, N.H., Union Leader, the leading paper in that battleground state, underscored the political challenge. "Pension funds for workers take a hit," read a story about a roughly $500 million decline the past three months in the state's public pension fund.
Democrat Barack Obama opposes the accounts and has warned they could be a precursor to eliminating the government entitlement program. Critics also note that one of McCain's top economic advisers is former Texas Sen. Phil Gramm, a free-marketeer who pushed the idea of a privatized retirement system as far back as 1988.
Obama, a senator from Illinois, has suggested shoring up the program by imposing a Social Security tax of no more than 4 percent on earnings above $250,000; currently, only the first $102,000 in income is subject to the tax. Income in the "doughnut hole" between those figures would not be taxed.
McCain calls such a tax punitive and counterproductive. He also says refusing to discuss private accounts amounts to political posturing. He says his willingness to broach the subject is emblematic of his "Country First" campaign motto and harkens back to bipartisan discussions between President Reagan and Democratic House Speaker Tip O'Neill Jr. the last time the system was revamped in 1983.
"We have to have some straight talk for America. The Social Security system is going to go broke. It will not be there for present day men and women who are working. And we have to fix it and we have to do it in a bipartisan fashion," the Arizona senator said Wednesday during a town hall meeting with running mate Sarah Palin in Grand Rapids, Mich. GREEN BAY, Wisc. - Wall Street turmoil left John McCain scrambling to explain why the fundamentals of the U.S. economy remained strong... more -
Record corporate bailout reveals the bankruptcy of American capitalism
By Barry Grey
13/09/08 "WSWS" -- - The US government takeover of the mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has dealt a shattering blow to the ideology of market capitalism, which has been used for decades to justify a relentless assault on the working class and a vast transfer of wealth to the American ruling elite.
The endless invocations of the virtues of private enterprise, individual entrepreneurship and self-reliance, used to demonize socialism and defend a system that exploits the vast majority for the benefit of a financial elite, have been exposed as frauds. When it comes to big capital, losses are socialized. Only profits remain private.
The same forces who year after year have inveighed against “big government” in order to justify the removal of all legal impediments to the accumulation of corporate profits and private fortunes, and carry out the destruction of social safeguards for the working class, have engineered a massive expansion of government power to safeguard the interests of the financial elite.
The bailout has as well exposed the real relations of political power and influence behind the façade of American democracy. The largest government bailout of private companies in world history—whose ultimate cost to taxpayers is likely to reach hundreds of billions—was sanctioned in advance by the Democratic Congress and given instant approval by the leadership of both parties and both of their presidential candidates.
There have been no investigations into the greatest financial scandal in world history. Neither party has any interest in bringing to light the swindling and skullduggery of the Wall Street moguls, because they are both bound hand and foot to those responsible for the financial debacle.
What has been revealed is the existence in the United States, behind the increasingly tattered veneer of democratic institutions, of a plutocracy—the political rule of the rich. When it comes to the basic interests of the financial aristocracy, both parties and all of the official institutions of society snap to attention and do the bidding of their Wall Street masters.
The bailout of the two mortgage giants—which account for 80 percent of new home mortgages in the US—is a demonstration of the historic failure of American capitalism and the profit system on a global scale. It was precipitated by the deepest economic crisis since the Depression of the 1930s, whose epicenter is the United States. The Bush administration moved to take over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac under conditions of a rapid erosion of international confidence in the solvency of not only these two companies, but of the United States government itself.
Over the past several months, global investors, including central banks and government investment funds, primarily in Asia and Russia, have been dumping their vast holdings in mortgage-backed securities issued by the US government-sponsored firms. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have a combined liability of $5.3 trillion in mortgage-backed securities which they own or guarantee. The run on their assets has not only intensified the crisis of the two companies, which are massively leveraged and have suffered billions of dollars in losses as a result of the collapse of the US housing market, it has thrown into question the status of all US government debt, including US Treasury bonds. By Barry Grey ... more -
Independents at Last : Alaska Chinook
How do Alaskans feel about Palin? This blog gives you a good idea...
This BLOG Sponsored by: ~ Writings From Alaska ~
The TRUTH about the most Corrupt State of the Union ~Alaska Chinook~
Join Us @ http://chinookjournal.blogspot.com
http://chinookjournal.blogspot.com/2008/09/independents... How do Alaskans feel about Palin? This blog gives you a good idea... This BLOG Sponsored by: ~ Writings From Alaska ~ ... more -
Coca-Cola continues unethical and dishonest practices in India
Unethical and Dishonest Practices in India:
Company Must Follow Recommendations of Company Funded Study:
Shut Down Kala Dera Bottling Plant
Please go to this webpage for detailed information (fact sheets, University reports, international studies, legal actions etc.):
http://www.indiaresource.org/campaigns/coke/2008/kalade...
The way Coca-Cola is 'running business' in India is shameful. Coca-Cola has not made any effort to stop harming the people & their environment. Unethical and Dishonest Practices in India: Company Must Follow Recommendations of Company Funded Study: ... more -
A water fight in Maine
These metal fingers are the source of a fierce debate that has gripped this small town and others across Maine, forcing residents to choose between Poland Spring - a company with a century-old history in the state - and their newfound environmental and social sensibilities.
For more than a hundred years, the company has drawn waters from Maine springs and marketed it to the world as just possibly "the best tasting water on earth." But now McMahon and others are part of a growing movement raising questions about the homegrown company's corporate parents - Nestlé Waters North America purchased it in 1992 - and the very concept of bottled water, which uses plastic and oil to deliver a product that many can get from their faucet.
As the company seeks to tap new springs, a number of towns have begun to push back against locating water-extraction sites on their land, forcing this quintessentially Maine company to consider the once unthinkable: looking to other states for its water.
"We're a Maine company," said Mark Dubois, Poland Spring's natural resource director. But if the industry continues to grow, he said, the company is going to need more water.
"We might have to force our hand," he said.
Later this month, Shapleigh residents will decide whether to put a moratorium on water pumping, which would freeze Poland Spring's plans to test the town's water. In Ogunquit, selectmen are considering a citizen petition they received in opposition to water extraction. Nearby Wells residents are set to vote in November on a 180-day moratorium, much like the one in Shapleigh, while they prepare an ordinance that would set ground rules for pumping.
But the issue is greater than extraction alone. Poland Spring, the nation's third-leading brand of bottled water, after Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo, is facing mounting pressure on other fronts.
Take Back the Tap, a national organization that encourages people to eschew bottled water, recently launched a campaign in Portland.
Activists in Kennebunk are boycotting Poland Spring in protest against Nestlé, after the company tried to purchase water from the local water district for bottling. At a war protest in early August, organizer Jamilla El-Shafei asked participants not to bring Poland Spring water.
"There is definitely a movement afoot," El-Shafei said. "They're trying to corporatize and commodify water. . . . Water should be in the public trust."
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Nestle' like other multinational companies doesn't care one whit for the citizens of these towns. All they care about is profit. They place their pipes in the ground that does not belong to them and suck the lifeblood out of it to make their wallets fatter. It is great to see residents of these towns standing up to them as they think because they are corporations their size entitles them to anything they can buy off. I am sure the vote to take place there will be close, and actually, I am wondering who they may be applying pressure to to allow Nestle' to win this vote. Of course, if they are actually frozen out of Maine there are other states they will target. And people will have to stand up to them anywhere they go in this country. We can no longer afford to give our precious water away to hungry greedy companies considering that water is becoming more precious to us in many areas of this country due to drought and waste and the fact that it is a public trust not a private commodity. These metal fingers are the source of a fierce debate that has gripped this small town and others across Maine, forcing residents to c... more -
Pensito Review » Palin Cut Funding for Alaska’s Special Needs Children by 60 Perce...
At her speech before the Republican National Convention, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin made this heartfelt-seeming claim, via CBS News online:
Palin: “To the families of special-needs children all across this country, I have a message: For years, you sought to make America a more welcoming place for your sons and daughters. I pledge to you that if we are elected, you will have a friend and advocate in the White House.”
Sarah Palin might have changed her mind on this one recently. However, a comment here notes that Palin actually slashed funding for schools for special needs kids by 62 percent. Budgets: FY 2007 (pre-Palin), 2008, 2009 (all pdfs).
Analysis from Momocrats: The facts here show Governor Palin cut funding for special needs kids dramatically.
In 2007, before Palin assumed her office of governor, the State of Alaska FY2007 Governor’s Operating Budget for the Department of Education and Early Development Special Schools Component Budget Summary (this department provides services—not just school but services—for children with severe disabling conditions) includes approved and necessary budget increases to help special needs children. This budget was released in December, on the 15th to be precise, 2006.
In that budget, the budget actuals are (FY = Fiscal Year):
FY 2005 6945.30
FY 2007 Management Plan 7949.30
FY 2007 Governors 8265.30
Palin was elected governor in November of 2006, and assumed her position in January 2007.
When budget time rolled around in 2007, Sarah Palin—self professed advocate for special needs children, mother to a special needs child, aunt to a special needs child, and who promised in her acceptance speech last night that she was there for special needs children — slashed the budget. When she said she would be a “friend and advocate in the White House,” I guess she just meant in words, not with actual money for needed services.
Here’s what the State of Alaska FY2008 Governor’s Operating Budget for the Department of Education and Early Development Special Schools Component Budget Summary shows:
FY 2006 7949.30
FY 2007 Management Plan 3173.70
FY 2008 Governor 3156.00
You see right. Under Governor Palin, funds decreased from a planned budget of 8265.30 to 3156.0. That’s a 62 percent decrease. Actual consumed amount went from 7949.3 to 3156.00, where it lingers to this day. That’s a 60 percent decrease. At her speech before the Republican National Convention, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin made this heartfelt-seeming claim, via CBS News onlin... more -
Poison in your stomach: genetically modified eggplants
After experimenting with rats, goats, sheep and cows, it is now the turn of Indian people. In a few months from now, if the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) of India has its way, the first genetically modified food crop Bt Brinjal will be on your table.
Whether it is the laboratory rats or higher mammals, the animal kingdom has been more discerning possibly owing to a sixth instinct which human beings sadly lack. There is otherwise no explanation for why laboratory rats, for instance, should always be spurning GM foods. And when force fed, rats have invariably developed tumours and deformed body organs, including kidneys and livers, as well as serious diseases and ailments.
We have heard repeatedly of the death of sheep and goats when left to graze in the Bt cotton fields of India. First it was reported from Andhra Pradesh, and now newspaper reports point to the south-Indian state of Orissa. However, not much is public about how the cattle react. Several farmers in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana have told me that cows avoid the Bt cotton fields when left to openly graze.
The Bt gene that has been infused in Bt cotton (or Bt corn on which most of the laboratory rat studies have been conducted) is no different from the same gene drawn from a soil bacterium scientifically called Bt that is now being incorporated in Brinjal. This gene releases a toxin within the plant that kills fruit-and-shoot borer insects. The Maharashtra Hybrid Seed Company (Mahyco), which is spearheading research on Bt Brinjal, claims that the genetically-modified Brinjal is safe for human consumption.
I have never been placated by the safety claims made by these companies. For several decades now we were told that cigarette smoking wasn't harmful to human health, that chemical pesticides were completely safe, and that white sugar poses no danger to the human body. These are not the only products that received the safety certificate - the list is endless. And yet decades later, after inflicting a heavy human cost the world over, most of these products are being banned or phased out. Long since sugar-based food products hit the market and were vouched safe, diabetes has suddenly assumed epidemic proportions.
Diabetes is a case in point: notwithstanding that the disease is growing at an alarming scale, the disappearance of the traditionally-cultivated Brinjal from the market will surely take away one of the simple home remedies and widely-practiced dietary solutions to combating the Type-2 diabetes. I too suffer from Type-2 diabetes, and therefore find it appalling that no scientific organisation, including the GEAC, is coming clean on what the genetically modified Brinjal will mean for people like me.
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If you don't believe me, let us listen to Prof Dave Schubert of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California: The Bt toxin is 1000 times more concentrated than in Bt sprays, which do not themselves have a history of safe use. In other words, what Dr Schubert says is that genetically modified Bt plants, and that includes Bt Brinjal, carry a toxin that is a thousand times more potent than what is used to kill insects. Strains of Bt have been used as sprays to control harmful insets. Spine chilling, isn't it?
The problem is that once Bt Brinjal enters the market, there is no way you can distinguish it from the normal ones. Your vegetable vendor will never be able to sell you the normal Brinjal that you are so used to buying. Moreover, once the genie is out, there is no way to call it back.
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India is once again to be the guinea pig to make biotech companies profits. As the article states, there is no shortage of eggplants (brinjal) in India. There is no other reason for this but profit at the expense of health. And once again without disclosure. It is despicable. After experimenting with rats, goats, sheep and cows, it is now the turn of Indian people. In a few months from now, if the Genetic En... more -
Florida tomato agribusiness giants plead guilty to enslaving Mexican and Guatamala...
"The successful prosecution of five Immokalee residents on slavery charges is satisfying, but the brutal details of their treatment of farm workers show how warped the agricultural labor system is...
This is among six slavery cases the Coalition of Immokalee Workers has helped prosecute, freeing more than 1,000 people. Coalition member Gerardo Reyes asked Tuesday, "How many more workers have to be held against their will before the food industry steps up to the plate and demands that this never - ever - occur again in the produce that ends up on America's tables?"
Also, click here to read the US Department of Justice press release announcing the convictions.
UPDATE #1: US Sen. Bernie Sanders issues a statement on the convictions! Here's an excerpt:
"... I applaud U.S. Attorney Doug Molloy and his staff for successfully prosecuting this case. I also want to congratulate the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) for their on-going efforts to protect some of the most exploited workers in our country...
... As a member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) Committee I intend to introduce legislation in the very near future which will end a loophole in current law which enables growers to avoid taking responsibility for what happens on their fields when workers are being enslaved.”
September 3, 2008: Yesterday, at federal court in Ft. Myers, FL, farm bosses from Immokalee pleaded guilty to "numerous charges of enslaving Mexican and Guatemalan immigrants, brutalizing them and forcing them to work in farm fields." ("Five to plead guilty on charges of enslaving immigrant laborers," Ft. Myers News Press, 9/2/08).
According to the News-Press report:
"The 17-count indictment in the case -- one of the largest slavery prosecutions Southwest Florida has ever seen -- was released in January. It alleges that for two years, Cesar Navarrete and Geovanni Navarrete beat agricultural laborers, chained them up, locked them in boxes and trucks on the family property while keeping them in ever-increasing debt.
Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney Doug Molloy has called it "slavery, plain and simple."
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What words are there in the English language or any language to describe the disgust for this? This is America? I am very disturbed at not knowing what has transpired to get food to my table!
The CIW issued the following statement to press about the convictions:
"The facts that have been reported in this case are beyond outrageous -- workers being beaten, tied to posts, and chained and locked into trucks to prevent them from leaving their boss. How many more workers have to be held against their will before the food industry steps up to the plate and demands that this never -- ever -- occur again in the produce that ends up on America's tables?"
"What's most frustrating is that there is a solution. As US Senator Bernie Sanders said when he visited Immokale, 'Slavery is the extreme. The norm is a disaster.' If we can improve the norm -- guarantee fair wages and humane conditions for all Florida farmworkers -- then we can eliminate the extreme. And there are now several retail food industry leaders who have agreed to do their part to promote social responsibility in Florida agriculture. Yet the leaders of Florida's tomato industry -- who are holding their annual meeting this week at the Ritz Carlton in Naples -- continue to stand in the way of progress. The FTGE needs to start working with Yum Brands, McDonald's, Burger King, and the other major tomato buyers who want to put an end to exploitation in Florida's fields."
Unconscienable... but do Americans on the whole care? "The successful prosecution of five Immokalee residents on slavery charges is satisfying, but the brutal details of their treatme... more -
Top ten most disturbing facts and impressions of Sarah Palin
*A so-called political reformer, Palin has big money ties to Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, who has been indicted for political CORRUPTION.
*Palin reportedly came out against legislation introduced by Rep. George Miller, a member of the House Natural Resources Committee, that would "end Alaska's policy of allowing people to shoot wolves from airplanes."
Miller is among a large number of folks who believe the practice is not only cruel, it's unnecessary (proponents say it is to keep caribou and moose numbers up for other hunters) and a violation of federal law banning airborne hunting.
*Palin has been said to have a "failing record" on wildlife -- including being in FAVOR of drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge -- and she has OPPOSED efforts to protect beluga whales in the Cook Inlet (whose numbers have dropped to just 375) because it might adversely affect the oil and gas industries.
As the Huffington Post reported: Palin has also tried to make gunning down wolves (and even bears) from the air easier and financially rewarding. Last year, the state offered a $150 bounty as an incentive for pilots and aerial gunners to kill more wolves. And leading up to this week's statewide vote on Measure 2 to stop the aerial shooting of wolves and bears, Palin's Board of Game spent $400,000 of PUBLIC money on brochures and radio ads to influence the election. She not only took an inhumane and unsporting position at odds with the principles of wildlife management and fair chase, but did it in an undemocratic and underhanded way.
*Palin doesn't believe global warming is man-made.
At every campaign stop, McCain says that human activity is the driving force behind global climate change. For the first time in its history, the GOP caught up to the rest of the planet by accepting the reality of man-made climate change in its 2008 platform. It reads, "The same human activity that has brought freedom and opportunity to billions has also increased the amount of carbon in the atmosphere," and "increased atmospheric carbon has a warming effect on the earth."
But Palin is among the conservative fringe that rejects the scientific consensus. According to the Washington Post, "Sarah Palin told voters there she wasn't sure climate change wasn't simply part of a natural warming cycle." Palin told the conservative Web site NewsMax, "I'm not one ... who would attribute it to being man-made."
This may help explain why Palin announced this year that Alaska would sue the Department of the Interior over its decision to add the polar bear to its list of endangered species. If people are "over-reacting" to global warming, as Palin has said, then the polar bears' rapidly dwindling habitat should be FINE and those bears can FEND for themselves. As Palin explained in an op-ed in the New York Times, "I strongly believe that adding them to the list is the wrong move at this time... The Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group, has argued that global warming and the reduction of polar ice severely threatens the bears' habitat and their existence. In fact, there is insufficient evidence that polar bears are in danger of becoming extinct within the foreseeable future."
*Palin staunchly opposes abortion, EVEN in cases of RAPE and INCEST.
Palin only supports abortion if the mother's health is in danger. Rape and incest don't register with her as legitimate reasons to honor a woman's right to choose -- not even if the women is her own daughter. In 2006, when her daughter Bristol was only 14, Palin said that she would not support choice even if her daughter were raped. --She made that announcement at a time when Alaska was plagued with a rape rate more than twice as high as the national average.
*Palin takes unnecessary risks with the health of her own child, supports failed abstinence-only programs.
http://www.alternet.org/election08/97198/top_ten_most_d... *A so-called political reformer, Palin has big money ties to Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, who has been indicted for political CORRUPTION. ... more -
Link by Link - Don’t Like Palin’s Wikipedia Story? Change It...
PLEASE SEE THE COMMENT: By NOAM COHEN {"Blue Bunting" (704)}
" Oddly enough, as YoungTrigg began to tackle editing the Palin article, another editor happened to be working there too. This user, Ferrylodge, a lawyer who has contributed to Wikipedia for years and describes himself as a independent-minded Republican, was interested in examining the accusations that Ms. Palin had used her position to get a trooper dismissed for personal reasons.
He ended up editing YoungTrigg’s edits, toning down entries that seemed biased, removing material that seemed extraneous, like the exact unit that Ms. Palin’s son is serving in that will be going to Iraq. “A lot of stuff was useful — like citing a biography of her,” he said in a telephone interview, speaking under condition of anonymity to avoid tipping off his clients that he spends time on Wikipedia. “Some was questionable stuff.” In general, he said, the editing “indicates a very close familiarity with Governor Palin.”
The lawyer said that when YoungTrigg linked to government documents on a government Web site related to the trooper case, it seemed like this editor was not exactly a political naïf.
But, he says, this person may be Wikipedically naïve. “They didn’t quite know what they were getting into — they got a lot of conflict-of-interest notes,” he said. And much of that original, flattering material has been overwritten.
By Sunday morning, YoungTrigg came forward, still anonymous, on his or her Wikipedia user page: “It’s not true that ‘all of my edits made Palin look better.’ ”
The user narrowed down YoungTrigg’s identity: “I am not Sarah Palin. I think it is obvious that I am not the five-month-old Trig Paxson Van Palin. I am not a member of Sarah Palin’s family, or even Michael Palin’s family.”
YoungTrigg was a user name picked for this task; for other editing, he or she chooses other names: “I will acknowledge that I volunteer for the McCain campaign, one of thousands of people nationwide who are working to elect the best candidate for the job. Palin was not the nominee when I made my edits, though I am certainly excited about the selection. I don’t believe I have a conflict of interest problem.”
That said, nobody will be hearing from YoungTrigg again anytime soon. On the bottom was a black-bordered box surrounding the word “retired.” <flag as inappropriate>Why is this inapropriate?
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There was a problem submitting your report. Please try again later. " PLEASE SEE THE COMMENT: By NOAM COHEN {"Blue Bunting" (704)} ... more -
Business, oil groups sue over federal protection for polar bears in Alaska |
CHICAGO — The American Petroleum Institute and four other business groups filed suit last week against Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director H. Dale Hall, joining Alaska Gov. SARAH PALIN'S administration in trying to reverse the listing of the polar bear as a threatened species.
On Aug. 4, Alaska sued to oppose the polar bear’s listing, arguing that the animal’s populations as a whole are stable and that melting sea ice does not pose an imminent threat to their survival.
The suit says polar bears have survived past warming periods. The federal government has 60 days from the filing date to respond.
One of the plaintiffs in Thursday’s lawsuit, the National Association of Manufacturers, lauded the choice of PALIN as the Republican vice presidential nominee for reasons including her ADVOCACY of Alaskan oil and gas exploration, which many fear could be affected by the bear’s protected status.
The manufacturers association and the petroleum institute were joined in the lawsuit by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Mining Association, and the American Iron and Steel Institute.
They object to what they call the "Alaska gap" in relation to the special rule the federal government issued in May in conjunction with the polar bear’s protected status.
The rule, meant to prevent the polar bear’s status from being used as a tool for imposing greenhouse gas limits, exempts projects in all states except Alaska from undergoing review in relation to emissions.
Manufacturers association Vice President Keith McCoy said the group sees the rule as unfairly subjecting Alaskan industry to greenhouse gas controls and opening a back door for regulation nationwide.
"This could significantly curtail oil and gas exploration," especially on Alaska’s North Slope, he said. "It’s discrimination against the state of Alaska. During a time when gas prices are high and we need to look at all options, to issue something that shuts off a viable resource" is ill-advised, he said.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the D.C. Circuit, notes that greenhouse gas emissions worldwide contribute to global warming and says that projects in Alaska should not be subject to special SCRUTINY because of the polar bear’s STATUS.
Kassie Siegel, climate program director for the Center for Biological Diversity, which originally petitioned to list the polar bear as an endangered species in 2005, decried the assertion in the Alaska suit that science does not prove that polar bear populations are declining. The center is also suing the federal government, seeking to change the polar bear’s status from "threatened" to "endangered."
At least four current federal lawsuits challenge aspects of the listing. CHICAGO — The American Petroleum Institute and four other business groups filed suit last week against Interior Secretary Dirk Kemptho... more -
Shell rebuked for 'greenwash' over ad for polluting tar sands project
The Anglo-Dutch energy giant Shell misled the public about the green credentials of a vastly polluting oil project in Canada, in an attempt to assure consumers of its good environmental record, a media watchdog will rule today.
In an embarrassing rejection of Shell's "greenwash", the Advertising Standards Authority said the company should not have used the word "sustainable" for its controversial tar sands project and a second scheme to build North America's biggest oil refinery. Both projects would lead to the emission of more greenhouse gases, the ASA said, ruling the advert had breached rules on substantiation, truthfulness and environmental claims.
Carried by the Financial Times on 1 February to accompany Shell's financial results, the company claimed: "We invest today's profits in tomorrow's solutions."
The advert continued: "A growing world needs more energy, but at the same time we need to find new ways of managing carbon emissions to limit climate change. Continued investment in technology is one of the key ways we are able to address this challenge, and continue to secure a profitable and sustainable future."
Shell explained it was harnessing its technical expertise "to unlock the potential of the vast Canadian oil sands deposits".
The WWF (formerly the Worldwide Fund for Nature) complained that extracting low-grade bitumen from sand was highly inefficient and destroyed huge tracts of virgin forest. In its defence, Shell maintained that new technology was reducing pollution from the Athabasca Oil Sands Project in Alberta in which it owns a 60 per cent stake.
Shell quoted a critical WWF report as rating its Muskeg River Mine one of the least damaging coal-tar sands projects because it sought to limit emissions of nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide and organic compounds.
Making its ruling, the ASA quoted Canada's independent National Energy Board that oil sand developments had considerable social and economic impacts on water conservation, greenhouse gas emissions, land disturbance and waste management.
David Norman, the WWF's director of campaigns, said: "The ASA's decision to uphold WWF's complaint sends a strong signal to business and industry that greenwash is unacceptable." The Anglo-Dutch energy giant Shell misled the public about the green credentials of a vastly polluting oil project in Canada, in an at... more -
Farm and food: Monsanto's prices to rise on RoundUp and seeds
In late March, Monsanto Co. sent a Dear Valued Customer letter to most U.S. corn and soybean farmers. The reason, wrote Jim Zimmer, Monsanto's vice president of U.S. branded business, was to discuss some current marketplace dynamics that will directly affect you in terms of increased prices for Monsanto's line of Roundup herbicides for 2008.
Demand for glyphosate, Roundup's generic counterpart, is at an all time high, explained Zimmer. As such, we have seen the demand for Roundup brand herbicide increase more than our current ability to supply.
That's a problem, he continued, because We have a reliable supplier commitment to farmers who choose to purchase Roundup Ready technology and who choose to purchase Roundup brand herbicide that we will have supply available.
The solution?
Our competitive challenges have put our commitment at risk, forcing us to increase our price for Roundup herbicide.
Golly, a farmer who telephoned me about the letter asked, How much is their promise to me going to cost me?
Globally, about $411 million, the amount Roundup net sales increased from March through May over the same three months in 2007, according to Monsanto's third quarter, Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission June 27.
That's a 54 percent increase.
Additionally, the 10-Q reports, Net sales of Roundup and other glyphosate-based herbicides increased 63 percent, or $1,222 million $1.222 billion in the nine-month comparison with fiscal 2007's first three quarters.
Remarkably, however, that $1.2 billion increase in Roundup sales, notes the 10-Q, was posted despite a seven percent sales volume drop in Roundup and other glyphosate-based herbicides in third quarter 2008 and only an 8 percent increase in global Roundup sales for the nine-month period ending in May.
Clearly, Roundup mostly because Monsanto boosted its price hit a home run. Gross profit increased $927 million because of higher sales of Roundup and other glyphosate-based herbicides in the first nine months of 2008, the company said.
What Monsanto did for Roundup herbicide this spring, it promises to do for Roundup seed corn next year, according to a July interview of company officials by DTN and Progressive Farmer editors.
Indeed, wrote Marcia Taylor for DTN after the gathering, Even the list price on seed corn will topple the $300 per bag barrier starting this fall, up about $95 to $100 per bag, or 35 percent on average, according to Monsanto officials.
snip
Again, according to Monsanto's most recent 10-Q: In the first quarter 2008, Monsanto entered into an agreement on corn herbicide tolerance and insect control technologies with Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc (whereby Monsanto will receive) cumulative cash receipts of $725 million over an eight-year period.
In third quarter 2008, Monsanto and Syngenta entered into a Roundup Ready 2 Yield Soybean License Agreement (under which) the minimum obligation from Syngenta over this (nine-) year period is $81 million, reports the 10-Q.
Is Monsanto everywhere? Almost; according to its June SEC filing, it recently bought a vegetable seed company in Europe, a seed corn company in Guatemala, another in Brazil. In late March, Monsanto Co. sent a Dear Valued Customer letter to most U.S. corn and soybean farmers. The reason, wrote Jim Zimmer, Mo... more -
Christian Century article on concerns over "acid" mines planned in Michi...
Above Photo of Lake Superior shoreline © Jim Kruger
Please read the Christian Century Article by Rev. Jon Magnuson on the "Acid Mine" that threatens Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
An ELCA Lutheran pastor, Rev. Magnuson is known across northern Michigan for creating numerous interfaith environment initiatives and other projects projects involving over 150 churches/temples, American Indian tribes, college students, at-risk teens, health care professionals and many others.
If this mine opens along Lake Superior, it could leak sulfuric acid into the Great Lakes.
It's the first of countless sulfide and uranium mines planned for Northern Michigan.
Besides unproven "new" technology, the mine will be open for only seven years - and create only about 150 short-term jobs. It's a drop in the bucket compared to the economic impact of the U.P.'s longstanding iron ore mines.
A lot of greed for a smattering of nickel and other minerals that will be sucked out of our precious soil.
The international mining company that wants to set up shop in Marquette County is Kennecott Minerals - an outfit with a dismal environmental record that has closed other acid mines without proper cleanup apparently finding it cheaper to fight in court than pay for the proper cleanup of the now vacent mine sites.
Photo of Lake Superior shoreline © Jim Kruger
Inland drilling: A debate over mining in Upper Michigan
http://www.christiancentury.org/article.lasso?id=5020
Many fear that the aicd mines - that will be joined by uranium mines - are a death-knell for northern Michigan and its bread-and-butter tourism economy.
Who will want to visit an area dotted by hundreds of acid pits and possibly polluted rivers, lakes and streams.
There are recent swirling rumors that Kennecott took state officials on junkets and other allegations of wrongdoing as their deep pockets wooed local and state leaders.
If true, it would not be the first scandal involving the local operation named the Kennecott Eagle Minerals Company - as an important study critical of the mine were not made public by state officials until the information was leaked. Just an innocent oversight - the state claimed.
Do you hear the whirring sound? - it's Marquette's founding fathers are spinning in their graves.
For more information on the effort to stop the mines - visit Save the Wild UP website:
http://www.savethewildup.org Above Photo of Lake Superior shoreline © Jim Kruger ... more -
The broken promise of America: betrayal by America's rich
Who's paying the price for America's growing income gap? In the United States it is the richest among us who are most assuredly and solely benefiting, while the U.S. economy consistently fails over 30-million hard-working Americans primarily with substandard wages.
The U.S. government rigs the tax codes and contorts the laws specifically to over-burden the working classes while making the wealthiest in the United States more and more wealthy. The top one percent garners about 80% of all income gains. It is an extremely "lop-sided" system designed by the rich of this nation to benefit primarily the wealthiest top one-percent of our nation--particularly the top one-tenth of those wealthiest "one-percenters."
The working classes are simply and efficiently over-taxed to sure economic death working as much as 6 months out the year to pay "their" taxes, while the rich pay (as a percentage) MUCH less than their fair share. Is it fair that the wage earners are held to report literally ALL their income while the rich are exempted? Is it fair that American "corporations" (which the rich control with iron-clad fists) are shipping jobs, assets and intellectual property off-shore just as fast as they can?
The insolence and audacity of the rich to frame their own ideas exclusively in terms of purely "raw commercial value," serves as the primary excuse avoiding very real and generations-neglected social obligations and responsibilities to this nation--namely "to make society a more valuable place, to create involved participants...to form a more perfect union, to promote justice, to provide the common defense, to provide domestic tranquility, to provide for the COMMON wealth (the general welfare)--those are the reasons we created this country, and those should be the focus of our policies...but if our policies are merely pecuniary...then we're going to go down the wrong path." [quoting David K. Johnston, New York Times]
A devastating cast-like system is materializing in the United States at the behest of the rich who would have us remain ignorant or intentionally misled and deluded from the startling reality that is befalling hard-working Americans today... Who's paying the price for America's growing income gap? In the United States it is the richest among us who are most assur... more
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